For several years, flat screen televisions and other electronic devices with audio playback and sound systems have been known to provide inadequate sound volume and quality to the listening audience. Manufacturers of flat screen monitors, televisions, laptop and PC computers, hand held smart devices (including tablets and phones), and the like have chosen to sacrifice sound quality in favor of a clear television surface. This in turn distorts the sound quality, especially to those having minor hearing deficiencies.
Poor sound quality has been document in many reviews of such devices, and especially for flat screen televisions and monitors used in home entertainment settings. At the present time, the only way to correct this problem is to separately purchase a stand-alone single component or multi-component sound or amplification system to boost the sound and quality levels and to specifically direct the amplified sound at the listener. However, such sound systems are usually quite expensive, and often cost prohibitive, especially when the listener can often raise the sound level through the remote or television controller. Yet, raising the sound level of the television or monitor through the remote or television controller causes several additional problems, including sound quality distortion, speaker and sound reverberation, distracting echo and/or feedback, as well as causing annoyance to other inhabitants of the dwelling because of the boosted sound signal, reverberation, and/or echo.
This problem is particular acute with senior citizens, who often have minor to significant hearing problems associated with aging and/or earlier damage or injury from work-related exposure(s). However, many of the hearing problems associated with aging and/or injury/damage have been typically addressed through expensive surgical and/or medical appliance installations, the purchase of expensive assisted listening devices or systems, or combinations thereof.
Yet, the problem of sound signal and quality is not only a problem for senior citizens, this has been a problem for anyone that uses electronic devices with built-in speaker systems that are designed to consume as little space as possible. Flat-screen televisions, monitors, and hand-held devices are progressively designed to be thinner and lighter, thereby limiting the placement or location of speakers outlets and the necessary components to provide acceptable sound level and quality controls. For example, many flat screen television and monitor speakers are located along the lateral edges of such devices, with a small, defined width to accommodate the speaker outlet and components, which provides an particular or specific aesthetic appearance to the visible surface of the device, but fails to optimize sound level and quality. Moreover, hand-held devices (such as smart phones and tablets) are dimensionally designed so that speaker outlet placement often is facing downwardly or away from the user, such as along the backside of the device.
Accordingly, there is a need for a device or apparatus that improves the sound level, intensity, and/or quality.